Attachment for guitars



(No Model L. UTT. ATTACHMENT FOR GUITARS.

No. 583,102. Patented May 25,1897.

UNITED. STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LINCOLI UTT, OF LEXINGTON, MISSOURI.

ATTACHMENT FOR GUITARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 583,102, dated May 25, 1897.

Application filed September 23, 1895. Serial No. 564,009. (No modelfi To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, LINCOLN UT'l, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lexington, in the county of Lafayette and State of Missouri, have invented a new and useful Attachment for Guitars, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an attachment for guitars and similarstringed instruments; and it consists of a capo taste constructed for application to the neck of an ordinary guitar and adapted to be adjusted longitudinally thereon with facility to change the pitch of the strings and thereby simplify the operation of changing from one key to another in performing thereon.

The objects and advantages of this invention will appear in the following description, and the novel features thereof will be partieularly pointed out in the appended claims.

I11 the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of an attachment embodying my invention applied in the operative position to the neck of a guitar. Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the same taken parallel with the axis of the pressure-roll. Fig. 3 is a detail view of the saddle inverted. Figs. at and 5 are detail views of the clips which form the connections between the extremities of the spring and the trunnions of the pressure-roll.

Similar numerals of reference indicate cor responding parts in all the figures of the drawings.

The pressure-roll 1 is preferably of rubber or similar flexible and elastic or compressible material, through which extends a core, axis, or spindle 2 of spring wire or red, whereby the spindle and the body of the roll are adapted to exert a yielding pressure upon the strings. The extremities of the spindle or core project beyond the ends of the roll to form headed trunnions 3, which fit in slots 4i in the arms of the saddle 5, said slots extending to the extremities of the arms, whereby after the saddle has been arranged in the proper position beneath the neck of the instrument the trunnions of the roll may be dropped into the slots to bear with an even pressure upon all of the strings. The inner surface of the saddle is fitted with a lining 6 to bear upon the outer surface of the neck of the instrument and avoid marring the same as the attachment is moved longitudinally upon the neck.

The saddle is preferably constructed of sheet metal bent into a segmental form to extend around the outer surface of the neck of the guitar, and integral with the edges of said saddle are the upstruck ears '7, arranged at intervals and at transversely-opposite points to form a seat 8 therebetween. Said ears curve inward or toward each other at their extremities and are separated slightly to provide for the application of the spring 9 without threading the latter between the guides and the surface of the seat. The cars 7, which are located near the extremities of the saddle, are made of greater area than the ears 7 at the center of the saddle, whereby the former provide suitable finger-holds for the pressure of the thumb and forefinger of the hand which traverses the finger-board. The object of this construction is to provide for the adjustment of the capo tasto during the performance upon the instrument without causing unnecessary delay.

The spring above mentioned preferably consists of an endless rubber band, and the connection between the looped extremities thereof and the trunnions of the roller comprise clips 10 and 11, having slots 12 and 13 for engaging said trunnions, and hooks ll for engagement by the extremities of the band.

In applying the attachment to the neck of a guitar the saddle is first placed thereunder, with the slotted arms projecting upwardly above the plane of the finger-board. The roller is then dropped into place upon the strings, with the trunnions thereof engaging the slots in the arms of the saddle. The clip 11, having the closed slot 13, is then engaged over one of the trunnions of the roller with the extremity of the spring attached to its hook, and, finally, the spring is stretched longitudinally along the seat of the saddle and the clip 10 at the other end thereof is engaged with the opposite trunnion of the roller, said clip 10 having the open or bayonet slot 12 to provide for lateral engagement with said trunnion.

The construction of the device is such as to allow the tuning of the strings to proceed in the ordinary manner without interference, and it is preferable to tune the instrument with the roller of the attachment above the uppermost fret, the strings being tuned to the desired pitch and at the usual intervals. In order to avoid complicated fingering when longs.

other keys remote from that to which the strings are tuned are desired, the attachment may be moved longitudinally upon the neck to stop the strings at any desired fret. The movement of the attachment from one fret to the next in either direction changes the pitch of all of the strings either upward or downward the interval of a semitone.

The construction of the attachment, furthermore, is such as to adapt it for movement with facility to the desired fret to change the pitch or key of the performance without interrupting or unnecessarily delaying the same.

A further special advantage of the construction resides in the fact that after the strings of the instrument have been tuned the capo taste may be applied without changing the relative pitch of the strings, the saddle being first placed under the neck of the instrument and the roller being dropped lightly upon the springs in the position which it is to occupy when in use, the final attachment of the clips to the trunnions being accomplished without any movement of the roller other than a slight pressure.

The transverse resilient or yielding quality of the roller, by reason of its flexible core or center and yielding body or surface, is the mostimportant feature of the improved attachment, in that it enables it to pass over a fret either transversely or at a slight angle, due to the'carelessness upon the part of the performer,without throwing any of the strings out of tune. In other words, the roller is adapted to yield to suit the positions of the strings and can be moved to any desired point on the neck of the instrument without interfering with the relative pitch of the several strings. Also, it is now the practice to construct guitars and similar instruments with transversely-convexed finger-boards, whereby the center or intermediate strings project out beyond the plane of the side strings, thus making useless a transversely-non-yielding device of the class to which my invention be- On the other hand, the transversely resilient or yielding roller adapts itself to the transverse curvature of the finger-board or the relative disposition of the strings, and hence the pressure upon the strings is uniform, irrespective of the amount of curvature. In other words, the improved capo taste is adapted for use upon either flat or convexed fin ger-boards and is capable of performing its functions under the named conditions of use.

Various changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details of construction maybe resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

llaving described my invention, what I claim is- 1. In a capo tasto, the combination of a saddle adapted to be fitted to slide upon the neck of an instrument, and a pressi'ire-roll mounted upon said saddle to bear upon the strings,

said roll having a yielding surface and being constructed to yield transversely throughout its length between the terminal points of connection with the saddle, substantially as specified.

2. In a capo tasto, the combination with a saddle adapted to be fitted to slide upon the neck of an instrument, of a pressure-roll terminally mounted upon the saddle to bear upon the strings, said roll having a yielding surface, and a yielding or flexible core or spindle extending continuously therethrough to provide for transverse flexion of the roll between its points of support, substantially as specified.

3. In a capo taste, the combination of a sad dle adapted to be mounted to slide upon the neck of an instrument and having slotted arms arranged at the extremities thereof, a pressure-roll constructed of rubber to form a yielding surface and having a continuous spring-metal core or spindle extending axially therethrough and adapted to yield laterally with the body of the roll, the spindle or core being extended beyond the extremities of the body of the roll to fit in the slots in the arms of the saddle, and a spring seated upon the saddle and terminally connected to the trunnions, substantially as specified.

i. In a cape tasto, the combination of a saddle having longitudinally-slotted arms, the slots extending to the extremities of the arms, a pressure-roll having terminal trunnions to fit in said slots and adapted to be dropped thereinto after the arrangement of the saddle in contact with the under surface of theneck of an instrument, to avoid disarranging the tuning of the strings, said trunnions being headed, a spring seated upon the saddle, and clips connected to the extremities of the spring to engage the trunnions of the roll, one of said clips having a closed slot to engage one of the trunnions and the other clip having a laterally-open bayonet-slot to provide for lateral engagement with the other trunnion, substantially as specified.

5. In a capo tasto, the combination ofa saddle having an exterior seat and provided with. upstruck ears 7 and 7" extending inwardly over the seat, the extremities of opposite ears being spaced apart,a pressure-roll mounted at its trunnions in longitudinal slots in the extremities of the saddle, and a spring arranged in the seat and adapted to be introduced between the contiguous extremities of the opposite ears without threading, said sprin being terminally connected to the trunnions of the roll, substantially as specified.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

LINCOLi 'U'lf" ll' itnessesi WM. ll. CHJLES, H. O. WALLACE. 

